Atlanta @ Pittsburgh preview

Last Meeting ( Apr 18, 2013 ) Atlanta 6, Pittsburgh 4

Tim Hudson will aim for a milestone while Wandy Rodriguez will simply look for a return to health when the Atlanta Braves and Pittsburgh Pirates square off Friday in the second of four straight games at PNC Park. Hudson is taking his first stab at his 200th career victory and will be backed by a club that has won 11 of 12 games and hit four more home runs in a 6-4 series-opening victory Thursday.

Atlanta leads the majors with 29 homers, and Justin Upton cranked his MLB-leading ninth in Thursday's win. It will be up to Rodriguez to try to slow down the Braves' attack, but he has not pitched since April 8 due to a left hamstring strain. The lefty will also hope to help the Pirates establish some sort of consistency on the mound. Pittsburgh's staff gave up 17 runs in two games to begin the week before A.J. Burnett flirted with a no-hitter Wednesday. Jeff Locke followed that up with a rather poor 4 2/3 innings in the first game of the series.

TV: 7:05 p.m. ET, Fox Sports South (Atlanta), MLB Network

PITCHING MATCHUP: Braves RH Tim Hudson (2-0, 2.50 ERA) vs. Pirates LH Wandy Rodriguez (1-0, 1.00)

Hudson is aiming to become the 113th pitcher in baseball history to reach the 200-win mark and the second in six days, following Philadelphia's Roy Halladay, who accomplished the feat Sunday. Hudson is certainly set up to join the club. He has allowed just two runs in 13 2/3 innings in winning his last two starts and owns a 2.90 ERA in 12 career starts against Pittsburgh, including a 2.55 mark in six outings at PNC Park. Hudson is also 9-1 in his last 10 decisions on the road.

A successful bullpen session on Wednesday cleared the way for Rodriguez to make this start after being scratched from his last scheduled outing on Sunday. He left a game at Arizona on April 8 after just 2 1/3 innings due to the injury. Missing a start is a rarity for the 34-year-old. He has made an average of 32 over the last four seasons, throwing at least 191 innings a year during that span. Rodriguez is 3-3 with a 3.41 ERA in 12 games (11 starts) against Atlanta, all while he was a member of the Houston Astros.

WALK-OFFS

1. The Braves are 13-0 when they score at least once.

2. Pirates LF Starling Marte had a 10-game hitting streak snapped Thursday, going 0-for-5 with five strikeouts.

3. Hudson has given up one home run in 42 1/3 innings in PNC Park. It came in 2002.

PREDICTION: Braves 5, Pirates 3